Ciara Conway (Waterford, Labour)

I am delighted to have the opportunity to speak on the legislation. I want to comment first on an issue raised by several speakers. When a Bill is before the House and a problem is identified, people immediately turn to the work of the schools and suggest we should have some programme in the schools. When people make this point, I ask when will our children learn to read and write if we are all going to be preoccupied with alcohol programmes, sexual education programmes and mental health programmes. I understand this is an important aspect, but as individuals, parents, families and as a society, we have a responsibility to act in regard to the questions that arise in the context of this legislation. For example, we need to ask how we are to deal with drink driving in our society and not just place it at the foot of the school gate, time and again.

In the short time I have to speak, I would like to focus on one of the benefits of the boom, which is the relatively good road network. It has taken us a long time to catch up with the rest of Europe but, as a Deputy from outside the Pale who spends a lot of time on the road, I can definitely say the road infrastructure has improved. To be fair, my car is an extension of my office and, thanks to the late Mr. Steve Jobs, my iPhone and the hands-free kit are where I do much of my work. As I travel to and from Waterford on the M9, I am struck by the lack of services, which is a point raised by Deputy O'Sullivan earlier in the debate. This section of the Bill deals with the limits for drink driving, which is undoubtedly an important issue for us to tackle. Tiredness is another big killer, however, although it is not often spoken of. To be fair, the Road Safety Authority usually does a good job in terms of advertisement campaigns and public awareness coming up to bank holidays, but while the advice is to stop, have a coffee and take some time, if one is on the road from Dublin to Waterford there is nowhere to stop.

The majority of motorways throughout the country, including the M9, do not have stops where drivers can take a break. This is partly because it took until 2006 for the National Roads Authority to decide that motor service areas are a good idea. Just as the 2007 Act got up and running, however, the money ran out, and we are now left with the dilemma of what we might call "ghost motorways". Instead of signs telling drivers where they can stop on a motorway to take some time out to ensure their tiredness is not impairing their driving, they merely are being escorted off the road to a petrol station. This is not adequate for people who now commute long distances to work. They need to be able to pull in somewhere and this issue should be given serious consideration in the future. My concern is many drivers will simply choose to hold on until they reach their destination but if they already are fatigued, such time saving could come at a cost to their health and safety. Like other Members, I am aware that money is scarce, but service stops are important and one must ensure drivers have proper facilities available to them.

The legislation passing through the House is to be warmly welcomed as it helps to tighten up on breath testing for drink driving. It was interesting to learn from reading the Minister's helpful notes accompanying the legislation that a further road traffic (No. 3) Bill will be required to tidy up another mess left behind by Fianna Fáil. In 2010, the previous Government announced with great fanfare the harsh stance it intended to take on drink driving but did not equip the Garda with the requisite equipment to ensure the implementation of the legislation.

I will conclude by noting many Deputies have raised the issue of the need to educate young drivers. I commend Gay Byrne on the fantastic job he does, but is he the man one needs to reach out to young drivers to effect change? As one of the younger Members of the House, I am not being ageist and commend him on his work but consideration should be given to identifying a better role model to engage with such young people to ensure they change their behaviour.

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